“I have only one eye, and I have the right to be blind” goes arguably the most famous statement of military disobedience attributed to British Admiral Horatio Nelson. The expression, “to turn a blind eye” or “Nelsonian blindness” is believed to have entered the English language following that brave act of disobedience which won the Battle of Copenhagen for the Brits. Following Nelson, we have an option “to turn a blind eye” to undesirable occurrences, such as the possibility that COVID-19 (the novel coronavirus) would ravage the world, or to prepare for the worst while hoping for the best. The first option simply requires deliberate blindness which usually costs nothing, unless disaster strikes.
Ghana has been classed with 12 other African nations as being at high risk of the virus. It is expected that religious denominations will hold all day and all-night cross-religious and inter-denominational prayer sessions against the entry of the virus into the borders of Ghana. Prayer does work, actually, but chapter 22 verse 3 of the book of Proverbs teaches us something: “A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences” (New Living Translation of Then Bible). The virus can come in irrespective of how long we pray, so to Proverbs 22:3 we look.
The government’s COVID-19 Preparedness Plan, hopefully, has guidelines for companies so that economic activities do not suffer unduly while keeping people safe. We can look to the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) and other industry bodies to also activate their disaster preparedness strategies so that corporate Ghana is readied for the undesirable and the economy does not suffer severely. The time may be right for companies to review their continuity and contingency plans to take account of significant disruption to operations following an entry and spread of the virus. More importantly, plans must move from executive cabinets to the hands of employees so that companies can achieve coordinated responses. As a guide, try answering the following questions: will your company survive a shut-down for one month? Do you have alternative working plans and arrangements if your staff must stay off the office but keep work going? Do you have a plan for counter-party failures that may result from a possible outbreak of the virus? Do you have adequate medical care arrangements for your employees? Do you have recovery plans if your company is hit badly by an outbreak of the virus?
Among the risk management tools at your disposal is the hated old and dull INSURANCE. Yes, you can use insurance cover to protect your company against financial loss occasioned by an outbreak of an epidemic such as the coronavirus. A standard off-the-counter Business Interruption policy may focus on consequential loss occasioned by insured physical damage and leave you biting your nails. It is, however, possible to procure relevant extensions to your BI cover for situations such as coronavirus outbreak. The caution, as with all other insurance policies, and every other legal contract is to seek expert advice. Talk to an insurance broker who knows her job well. I must add, rather sadly, that it may be impossible to procure an extension to cover the medical epidemic if you don’t already have it. That is always the issue with insurance cover – too late to buy when you need it.
The bright side of the COVID-19 story is that fatality rates are not out of control yet and children do great even when infected. The world has always survived and risen to the challenge when one has presented itself. We shall survive this too.
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Ben Ohemeng-Baah